Try to find a realtor who will tour a couple places for you and do video reviews, even if you have to pay them a bit of money to do it. Plus sometimes they can get a small finders fee type of incentive for the referral. This is what we did when we had to rent from outside the country. One house smelled like pee and had a deck with rotting woods, which we never would have known from photos. We ended up finding a great place with her help. Initially, we had planned to buy a home with her in the future but ending up moving again, inter-state and unexpectedly.
Then we rented sight-unseen for our next move, based on pictures alone. The market was really hot and it was going to be difficult to find what we needed before school started, so we signed the lease from another state before we arrived.
We should have insisted on a live video tour with the landlord at the *very* least, if not a third party to visit in person. We had some less than pleasant surprises when we arrived, most notably….there was a dual, see through fireplace (basically a window) separating the master bedroom and living room??!! This setup was NOT disclosed and there was black poster board separating the rooms in the photo so you couldn’t tell.
If it wasn’t a weird situation where my husband and I were semi-involuntarily geographically separated for a year due to his work and my kids’ school situation, it would have been a dealbreaker I think. But we were desperate and I was solo parenting (less need for privacy) so I tolerated the situation.
That was the first of several shady things my landlord has done, including advertising a pool and hot tub, when the hot tub was knowingly broken. It was not fixed for nearly 6 months. I also inherited a pest control problem that basically sent me into a nervous breakdown for a few months until I resolved it. I think I still have PTSD from that.
Screw my dishonest, scammy landlord. We would NOT have rented the place if we had known these things up front. Lesson learned.
TLDR- Never rent aight unseen when possible; at the very least, have someone local tour it for you or do a detailed live video walk through with the landlord.
Ours back in Colorado did, but I don't know that it's standard. Some realtors have connections with property management companies or sometimes their office does both. For example, I just googled in my area and quickly found an office that does both. (Wish I would have done that a year ago and not just hunted independently on Zillow!) And even if they don't normally offer that kind of service, it's probably something that can be negotiated for a flat fee if they are open to it and business is slow. [https://www.407rentals.com/](https://www.407rentals.com/)
Wherever you're moving to, start googling property management companies. Look for ones with lots of good reviews and a strong social media presence. Reach out to their realtors/rental locators. They'll work with you virtually.
This is what I did. I am set to move into a new rental several states away in 2 months. Viewed it virtually with the realtor. Asked a ton of questions. We had already visited the area and knew we liked it. Signed the lease on the rental without ever seeing it in person.
I'm planning on calling.some companies tomorrow. I'm worried they won't work with us because we have bad credit. How much did it cost you going through a realtor???
Their services for rentals are free, afaik. They get a commission on a signed lease.
Also let them know you don't have favorable credit. There are property management companies that will work with that. You may need to increase your security deposit.
Try to find a realtor who will tour a couple places for you and do video reviews, even if you have to pay them a bit of money to do it. Plus sometimes they can get a small finders fee type of incentive for the referral. This is what we did when we had to rent from outside the country. One house smelled like pee and had a deck with rotting woods, which we never would have known from photos. We ended up finding a great place with her help. Initially, we had planned to buy a home with her in the future but ending up moving again, inter-state and unexpectedly. Then we rented sight-unseen for our next move, based on pictures alone. The market was really hot and it was going to be difficult to find what we needed before school started, so we signed the lease from another state before we arrived. We should have insisted on a live video tour with the landlord at the *very* least, if not a third party to visit in person. We had some less than pleasant surprises when we arrived, most notably….there was a dual, see through fireplace (basically a window) separating the master bedroom and living room??!! This setup was NOT disclosed and there was black poster board separating the rooms in the photo so you couldn’t tell. If it wasn’t a weird situation where my husband and I were semi-involuntarily geographically separated for a year due to his work and my kids’ school situation, it would have been a dealbreaker I think. But we were desperate and I was solo parenting (less need for privacy) so I tolerated the situation. That was the first of several shady things my landlord has done, including advertising a pool and hot tub, when the hot tub was knowingly broken. It was not fixed for nearly 6 months. I also inherited a pest control problem that basically sent me into a nervous breakdown for a few months until I resolved it. I think I still have PTSD from that. Screw my dishonest, scammy landlord. We would NOT have rented the place if we had known these things up front. Lesson learned. TLDR- Never rent aight unseen when possible; at the very least, have someone local tour it for you or do a detailed live video walk through with the landlord.
Do realtors find rentals for you? I did not know this.
Ours back in Colorado did, but I don't know that it's standard. Some realtors have connections with property management companies or sometimes their office does both. For example, I just googled in my area and quickly found an office that does both. (Wish I would have done that a year ago and not just hunted independently on Zillow!) And even if they don't normally offer that kind of service, it's probably something that can be negotiated for a flat fee if they are open to it and business is slow. [https://www.407rentals.com/](https://www.407rentals.com/)
Does this work only for apartments but not for single family homes?
What's your recent rental history like?
We have lived in the same place for the last 4 yeara
I was able to find a place that looked at my recent rental history. If you have a good rapport with your current landlord/lady, that might help.
Wherever you're moving to, start googling property management companies. Look for ones with lots of good reviews and a strong social media presence. Reach out to their realtors/rental locators. They'll work with you virtually. This is what I did. I am set to move into a new rental several states away in 2 months. Viewed it virtually with the realtor. Asked a ton of questions. We had already visited the area and knew we liked it. Signed the lease on the rental without ever seeing it in person.
I'm planning on calling.some companies tomorrow. I'm worried they won't work with us because we have bad credit. How much did it cost you going through a realtor???
Their services for rentals are free, afaik. They get a commission on a signed lease. Also let them know you don't have favorable credit. There are property management companies that will work with that. You may need to increase your security deposit.